Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s decision to “punish” scandal-tainted lawmakers in the Lower House election has sparked an outcry within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

At an emergency meeting of the LDP’s Tokyo chapter on Oct. 7, Shinji Inoue expressed complaints over the party leadership’s decision to withhold endorsements for certain lawmakers who were disciplined by the LDP in April over unreported political funds.

“Campaign broadcasts were recorded yesterday,” said Inoue, head of the Tokyo chapter. “We have received voices of discontent and dissatisfaction from constituencies of those (who will not be endorsed). I wonder if the decision could not have been made sooner.”

Only candidates endorsed by a political party are allowed to broadcast their pre-recorded campaign programs on TV or radio.

Ishiba initially intended to endorse all LDP lawmakers involved in the fund-raising scandal, in principle.

But on Oct. 6, he presented three guidelines on who would be excluded from the LDP ticket in the Lower House election expected on Oct. 27.

At least six of the 39 Lower House members who were disciplined for failing to report proceeds from fund-raising parties will not be granted party endorsements, including Koichi Hagiuda and Katsuei Hirasawa, both members of the Tokyo chapter.

Hagiuda, former chairman of the LDP’s Policy Research Council, and former reconstruction minister Hirasawa have been suspended from party posts over the scandal and have not appeared before the Lower House Deliberative Council on Political Ethics.

“I supported Ishiba with my heart and soul in the party leadership contest. Now, I am being given a raw deal,” Hirasawa told The Asahi Shimbun on Oct. 6.

He said Oct. 7, “I cannot stand the LDP being like this.”

The LDP leadership is considering withholding endorsements for additional lawmakers if they have not gained understanding from their constituents over the scandal, sources said Oct. 7.

A senior LDP official said the total number of non-endorsed candidates is expected to exceed 10.

The final decision will be made before Ishiba dissolves the lower chamber on Oct. 9.

More politicians will be affected by another decision of the LDP leadership. All lawmakers who failed to report proceeds from fund-raising parties will not be listed as candidates in the proportional representation portion of the Lower House election.

Under the Lower House election system, candidates who fail to win in single-seat constituencies can still gain a seat if they are also listed as proportional representation candidates.

Eight Lower House members representing Tokyo constituencies, including Hagiuda and Hirasawa, are expected to be excluded from the LDP’s proportional representation list.

Takao Ochi, one of them, announced on Oct. 7 that he will retire from politics without seeking re-election in the next election.

Ochi, who is in his fifth term, lost in the Tokyo No. 6 district in the 2017 and 2021 elections but gained a seat in the Tokyo proportional representation portion.

He emphasized that he made up his mind to retire before the LDP leadership decided to exclude scandal-tainted lawmakers from the proportional representation list.

But he acknowledged that the fund-raising scandal was a factor behind his decision.

“I thought it will be extremely difficult to gain understanding about myself being treated as a lawmaker who failed to report political funds,” Ochi said.

A senior member of the Abe faction, which was at the center of the fund-raising scandal, is indignant with the LDP leadership for not holding prior consultations for the key policy change.

According to the lawmaker, Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama assured members that they would not have to worry about endorsements or the proportional representation list the day before the party leadership announced its policy.

“We cannot trust such a party leadership. It is not something that a politician should do,” the lawmaker said. “If you try to improve approval ratings by lashing your peers with a whip, you fail.”

LDP lawmakers who will run as independents cannot expect support from Komeito, the LDP’s junior coalition partner.

Komeito leader Keiichi Ishii told reporters Oct. 7 that the party will not back non-endorsed LDP candidates in the next Lower House election.

Independent candidates without a political party’s endorsement are at a disadvantage not only in funding but also campaigning.

The Public Offices Election Law stipulates that candidates running in a single-seat constituency can distribute 70,000 fliers each.

But those endorsed by a political party can hand out 110,000. They can also mail more postcards to voters than non-endorsed candidates.

Independent candidates are allowed to display their posters only on election bulletin boards, but there are no such restrictions for those endorsed by a political party.